Signal-lamp.



Ii. E. (u E. B. ROEDDING.V

SIGNAL LAMP.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 29. IBIS.

Patented Mar. 19, 1918.

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G. E. 6L E. B. ROEDDING.

SIGNAL LAMP.

` APPLICATION FILED HEB. 29.19l6. 1,259,908. Panama 1m19.191s.

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UNTEDV STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GORDON E. ROEDDING AND EDW ABD B. ROEDDHG, QF DETROIT, MICHIGAN.

SIGNAL-Lm.

Bpeoication of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 19, 1918.

Application illed February 29, 1916. Serial No. 81,283.

To all whom it ma concern.

Be it known t at we, Gonoon E. Ronn- DING and EDWARD B. RoEnnINo, citizens of the United States of America, residin at Detroit, in the county of Wayne and tate of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Signal-Lamps, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanyin drawings.

his invention `relates to signal devices adapted for use upon motor vehicles and more particularly to such a device embody ing a. rotatable si carrying drum, and its ob)ect is to provi e simple and eiilcient electrical means for turning the drum and stopping the same in any desired position, such means havin a minimum number of moving Darts an being so arranged as to he rigidly supported, whereby injury to the parte due to vibration is eliminated and a -.very compact construction secured which is not lliable to get out of order and maybe cheaply manufactured. A further object of the invention is to provide certain other new and useful features in the construction and arrangement vof parts, all as hereinafter more fully described, reference being had to the accompanying drawings in which- Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section through a device embodying the invention; lFig. 2 is a left hand end elevation of the sance with its end cap removedI Fig. 8 is a similarview of the right hand end with the end* cap removed;

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section through the device;

lFig. 5 is a transverse vertical section on the lineV-V of Fig. 4;

Fig.- 6 is a perspective detail of a drum detached' t Fig. l is a developed view of the shell of the'drum, and

Fig. 8 is a wiring` diagram showing the paths of the current throu h the device.

In the drawings, 1 in icates a suitable casing which is preferably cylindrical in form and is provided at one side with'sntable means such as a clip 2 for rigidly securing the casing to any suitable sup orting bracket, and at its opposite side sal casing is formed wthan opening closed by glass or other transparency to orm a window .3 throu h which a series of words or other signafmarkings 4 on the ell of the drum may be seen. The ends o the casingV are.

of the casin closed by caps 6 each provided with a bulls eye and one or both of which may be made readily removable to give access to the interior of the casing.

The signal markings on the drum 5 consist preferably of a red trans arent portion with the words Stop and Slow at one side thereof and the words Right and Leftlat the other side, as shown in Fig. 7, all of the letters of said words being also transparent and preferably white in color the remainder of the drum being black an opaque so that the words may be readily l h ata distance during the day time and a Tof the signals may be illuminated at night by a lamp within the drum, the red aren permitting the use of the deviceas a tall light.

-Rigidly secured within the ends of the casing 1 are bearing brackets and 8 which form rigid supports for the ends of a tube 9 xed within and extending longitudinally at one side of or .below the longitudi `axis of said casing, and the brackets have upwardly extending portions or 'arms 10 formin i supports for 'bearin pins 11 and 12 att e longitudinal axis o drum `ti are mounted to turn freel concentrica-lly within the casin The rum comprises the shell having t e signaling words thereon and a spider secured within each end of the shell, each spider being formed with an dnnular rim or rirg 18 and an arm 14 extending radially inward to the axisof the drum to support the same and turn freely `upon the plus 11 and 12. y

Extending longitudinally in the axis of the drum is a driving shaft 15which is madefast at one end to oneof the arms`4 of the-drinn so that the drinn will be turned whenthe .shaft is turned, and this shaft extends inwardly :fromf one end of the drum to a point intermediate its ends where it is supported in a suitable bea tate '16 secured n on the tube 9. This at its. inner en is -provided with a spiralrib 17 which extends 4once around the shaft and this spiral rib 1s engai by a forked arm 18 chmod b' qi core mem r which slides freely within e.l tube 9 saidy arm extending throu and guided within alongitudina slot 1 1n the side of the tube.

To move the? y 18. along its slot and thus by reaaon'f'o engzgement with the spirslnb lturn thegaha 16 anditsdrum,

a series of electro-magnets are formed by placin solenoids` 20, 21, 22 and 23 in pairs upon le tube 9, the solenoids 20 and 21 being sleeved u on the tube at one end of the slot 19 and t e pair of solenoids 22 and 23 being sleeved upon the tube at the op osite end of said slot, said solen'oids thus eing rigidly supported in pairs upon the tube in axial alinement, with the pairs of solenoids in opposed relation. This arrangement of the solenoids permits of the use of a core which is common to all of the solenoids and com rises a core member fitting and sliding free y within the tube 9 and made up of sections which are rela ly movable and are connected to move together. ,The middle section 24 of the core carries the arm 18 and is of such a length that it extends across the space between the opposed ends of the solenoids and projects into the same for a distance at each end. The core also has end sections 25 and 26, the se' Lion 25 serving as a movable corefor the solenoid 20 and the section 26 performingr the function of a movable core for the solenoid 23, the core sec-y tions and solenoids thus forming electromagnets. The end sections 25 and 26 are connected to the middle section 24 by means of rods 27 secured tothe ends of the middle section at one end. and extending longitu` dinally throu h axial bores in the end sections, said r s being each provided with a head 28 to engage the outer ends of the end sections. To normall hold the end sections a inst the heads on t e rods. a coiled s prin 2 is sleeved upon each rod between thea facent ends of the end sections andthe 'middle section.

To move the core to mid position as shown in Fig. 1 and to normally hold it in that position. sprin fingers 30 are secured to an insulating bloc 31 which is su ported at one sideof the tube 9 between Y ie bearing plate 16 and a similar plate or member 82 secured upon the tube against the adjacent end of the opposed solenoid 22. The spring lingers whic are ,secured at one end to the block 31 extend beneath and over the tube 9 and engage at their free ends the sides of the arm 18 so that whenever the core 24 is moved longitudinally in either direction such movement will be resisted by one of the spring lingers, which will serve to re turn the core to mid position. This mid or normal position of the core holds the drum 5 with the central red transparency of the drum exposed to view through the window 3 in the casing, and thus when the parts are in normal or inoperative position this red signal portion of the drum only will be exposed to view and will serve the purpose of l rear tail light.

When the operator wishes to 've a signal, as when he is about to turn his automobile to the left and wishes to indicate the by the engagement of the forked arm 18' with the spiral rib 17 on the shaft 15 of the drum and said drum will be stopped with the word Left opposite the window 3 in the casing. As long as the solenoid 22 is energized. the core will be held in the osition to which it has been drawn andpthe drum will be held in the osition to which it has been turned with t e signal Left displayed. but as soon as the current is shut oli' and the solenoid is denergized one of the spring arms 30 will act to return the core and drum to mid or normal position with the red transparencv again displaved.

Should the operator desire to indicate that he is about to turn to the right, this irtdicating signal-will be made by energizing the solenoid 28. The core member 26 will be affected by such ma etization of the solenoid and will be move endwse thereby. thus exertin a pull on the middle portion 24 of the core y reason of comin in contact with `the head 28 on the rod 27. -he movement which is imparted to the drum by this movement of the core member 26 will be limited by said member comin in contact with the end 'of the stop plu 3 and thus the signal word "Riglit which is adiacent to the red signal on `the drum will be alined with the window of the casing. y Should the operator wish to indicate that he is going to stop o'r' slow down, these 4words which are on the drum at the oppofaite side of the red transparency, may be displayed by energizing the solenoid 20 to display the word Slow and solenoid 21 to displa 'the word Stop. The drum is limite in its turning movement in this direction inthe same manner in which t is limited in its turning movement in the opposite direction, that is by a stop plug 31 which is secured in the end of the tube 9 to be engaged by the bead on the r0d27 and by the end of the end core member 25. With this arrangement the drum is rotated each way from a center or mid position and therefore much less power is required to turn the drum than would be required if it rotated in one direction only, as it would then be necessary to turn it nearly a whole revolution and back again to normal position. In `this arrangement it is necessary to rotate it only approximately two-fifths of a revolution each Way fI'OID iio very thin and light material, but`a very small amount of power is reguired to turn it. Obviously more power is required to turn it to the limit of its movement in each directon, that is to display the wordsLeft and Slow, than is re uired to display the words Right and gtop, and t erefore the longer movement is secured through the energization of the solenoids 21 and 22 which act upon the central portion 24 of the core and have a stronger magnetic e'ect thereon. If found desirable, buffers 35 may be provided on the brackets 7 and 8 to be contacted by the arms 14 of the' drum to limit the turning movement of the drum when the same is turned to the limit of its movement in either direction.

To illuminate the interior of the drum so that the signals may be readily seen at night, a lamp 36 is supported by the block 31, which, block is provided 4with suitable contacts 37 and 38 for the lamp, one of said contacts havin a Spring portion 39 (see Fig. 5) which 1s in electrical contact with the tube 9, the other contact member 38 being'electrically connected with the source of electrical energy through the wire 40 attached to a binding screw 41 carried by the end bracket 8. The other branch of the lamp circuit comprises` the spring arm 89 engaging the tube 9 which forms a conductor for the current back to the bracket 8 to which a return wire 42 is attached by means of the binding screws v43.

The lamp 36 is held in lace upon the block 31 bv `means of a hol er 44 which is formed with an opening to receive the lamp and has a lug 45 at its inner end to engage a notched arm 46 on the support 16, the,

holder being extended in an opposite direction to form a long spring handle 47 ada ted to be engaged beneath a'suitable ca ch 48 and hold the lamp ymly in place. This holder also forms a suitable toolby means of which the lamp may be readily inserted in the drum through the small opening in the end of the drum at one side of the j arm. 14.

The electrical, circuits for the several solenoids are indicated diagrammatically in Fig. 8, the current being carried to the solenoids 20. 21, 22 and 23 by means of wires 49, 50, 51. and 52 respectively, attached to suitable binding screws on the bracket 8. The tube 9 and the wire 42 connected thereto form the return circuit for all of the solenoids.

With this arrangement of electro-magnets the drum is turned by means of the fewest number of moving parts possible and the arrangement is such that it is'necessary to turn the drum only a portion of a revolution each way from a mid or normal position, thus securing a saving in power and also a saving in friction and consequent weer of the parts. By supporting all ofthe solenoids in axial alinement upona rigid tube and carrying the core therefor within the tube,l the parts `cannot be affected by vibration of the automobile in use and the liability of the parts becoming displaced or broken is reduced to a minimum.

Having thus fully described our invention what we claim is :v-

1. In a device of the character described the combination with a movable member, o a plurality of electro-magnets within said movable member, and a common operatin member for said movable member, move different distances by the energization of the different electro-magnets.

2. In' a device of the character described, the combination with a movable member, of opposed electro-magnets, a common core for Vsaid electro-magnets, and means including a spiral member operated by the movement of said core for moving said movable member.

3. In a device of the character described the combination with a movable member, o a plurality of vaxially alined electro-magnets within said member, a movable core member common to all of said magnets and operatively connected to saidmovable member to move the same, and means for limitin the movement of said 'core member to di ferent distances of movement for different magnets. A

4. In a device of the character described, the combination with a signaling member, of axially alined solenoids arranged in oppoeed pairs, a .coremember common to all of said solenoids means between, theopposed pairs of solenoids'actuated by said core to tum 4said signaling member, and means in said solenoids for limiting the movement of the oo re ,member to turn the signaling member different distances.

5. Ina device of the character described, the combination with' a signaling Imember having a driving shaft; of opposed electror magnets. having a common core reciprocable 1n parallelismwith said driving shaft and i adapted to impart a rotary movement there-l position upon de-magnetizatin-o to, Aand means' for returning `said core to normal said cor e. In a device of am man dmtedjwlxi vthe combination with .a movablesignaling member, of a spiral member carried by said signaling member, opposed electro-magnets having a common core, means engagingsaid spiral member for transmitting motion from the core to said movable member, and at* means fo mid position.` 7. AIn a device of the character described, the combination with a rotatable signaling! member, of opposed .selenoids axial ahnement, a movable core-cominci Ryieiaingiy holding am com drum in mid position, and means for transthe combination of 'a rotatable dl'llmflivn" 1 tting motion from the electroma ets to shaft for turning the drum in eac direc- -tion from its mid Position.

9. Ina device o the character described,

the combination with a rotatable drum lia-ving signal markings. thereon, of a plurality of solenoids arranged in axial alinement, a movable core common to all of said solenoids, means including an arm and spiral member for transmitting motion from the 'core to turn the drum, and means for limiting the movement of thecore to dilerentistanoes according tothe number of solenoid's.

10. Ina device of the character described, the combination with a rotatable signalin member, of a plurality of axially alm said . casing, electrical signal markings thereon and arranged to display one of said'markmgs when the drum is in normal position and bo display the other markings when the drum is turned in either direction from its normal position, a cas, ing inclosing thedrum, brackets in the end of the casing, and electrical means supported by said brackets wholly within the drum for turnin the drum.

13. n a device of the character described, the combination of a rotatable drum having signal markings thereon and arranged to display one of said markings when the drum is in normal position and to displa theother markings when the drum is turne in either direction from its normal position, a casing nclosing the drum with its ends adjacent the open ends of the drum, a spiral member lixed to rotate with said drum, electrical means wholly within the limits of the drum for actuating said spiral member to turn said drum, and meansat the ends of the casm for supporting the drum and eleotrica means. o

14. In a deyice of thecharacterdescribed, the comblinatuiinofarotatable drumhlavingsl a mar lifs ,creemecasingincosma tg: drum, brissw .ther-ads@ he solenuds, n movable core common to all of supported by.,v Qd'ap said. solenoxds and comp relatively th 's normal movable parts, and means for imiting the ovements ofthe parts of said core to turn member to4 turnv the'same.'

11.'| 'a device of the character described?,

-si al marlrinV thereon and ,arran A 4dgslplay one of said markings when directionfrom its normal position, means for eldinlgly holding the drum in normal posi-'- on e ectromagnets wholl within the rotatable drum at one side o the axis. thereof for turning the drum diereni?4 from its normal position in one direction and other electromagnetsfor turningI `e drum dillerent distances from its norm vposition in an opposite direction.

12. In a device of the charactendescribed, the combination of a rotatable drumhaving 'copia u ma um my be mama m member -dilerent distances,- "f qcm operatively connected i is in normal position and to display the '6gmarkings when the drum is turned in eitherA l common movable corebsadl 'core heir'1 made fand-331111' l of ed tn uperat'eto .turn-.the drain*dillcrentV is tancia, said -.electrom agne'ts^ .disposed longitudinally .-ofthe drumjand .having 'a tures in presenceI oftwo' witnesses.

' GORDON E. ROEDDING.

EDWARD B. ROEDDIN G. Witnesses:

ANNA M. Doss, u Lsms E. Famosas.

Ive cents nel. by addressing the Commissioner e! Patenti.

Wlahllglrn, D. c."

. sth@ 111m H- 'litiy im "15. 1n aiievice o l l the combination afa' :nl the casinglfliayinglagp T o i signal Yruarlmigs, ada it- 

